Celebrity chefs are blocking GM science; Poland bans GMOs

Last week, Mark Lynas, a former spokesperson for campaigning against genetically modified food and its technology renounced his previous stance on GM food and apologized for his role in preventing more research into GM products. Now he has taken a step further and said celebrity chefs and other opinion forming writers have poisoned the public debate about GM food.

He mentioned how more than 3 trillion meals that contain GM ingredients have been eaten in the past decade and a half without any adverse effects on humans. As in his earlier statement, Lynas reiterated that GM technology will be needed in the future to help feed the billions more people that are expected to populate the earth in the next 50 years.

Despite Lynas’ recent announcements, some European countries continue to ban the use of genetically modified crops. Poland is the latest to ban the production of GM crops even though the European Food Safety Authority has approved these crops.

The Polish Agriculture Ministry claims there is a possibility of cross-pollination with non-GM crops and that the pollen from Monsanto’s MON810, which EFSA had approved, could make its way into honey. Individual member states have the right to ban GM crops if they can prove a scientific reason for doing so. Poland will now be required to submit scientific justification for its ban to the European Commission.